India has 17 Percent of the World’s Population Suffering from Breast Cance

NEW DELHI: With lifestyles in India changing, women are becoming increasingly vulnerable to cervical and breast cancers.

The latest trends point towards more younger women contracting breast cancers whereas the normal age of contracting the disease was anywhere between 45 and 55 years till a decade ago, said doctors at AIIMS.

According to recent reports, India has 17 percent of the world’s population suffering from breast cancer. According to experts from AIIMS, after cervical cancers, breast cancer is second most common cancer that people are suffering from.

Breast cancer falls under the category of lifestyle disease.

“Late marriage and declining trend of breastfeeding and Obesity which is a lifestyle disease are some of the causing factors.

“The survival rates in breast cancers range from 85 percent or more and low survival rates can be mainly attributed to lack of early diagnosis,” said a senior doctor from AIIMS.

An analysis of cancer rates between the years 1982 and 2005, a study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research between 1982 and 2005, showed that 10 out of every 100,000 women living in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore were diagnosed with breast cancer about 10 years ago.

Cervical cancer is a leading cause of cancer deaths among women in India accounting for nearly one-third of cervical cancer deaths across the world.

“The causes are sexual intercourse at an early age, multiple sexual partners, low immunity and even smoking which damages the cervical cancer cells leaving women more vulnerable to infection and cancer, and HIV infection,” said Dr Neerja Bhatla from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, AIIMS.

The experts recommended cervical cancer screening and breast cancer screenings after 22 years. For cervical screenings women should also undergo Pap test.